1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a recovery system for treating a surface, and more particularly to an apparatus for cleaning or coating a surface by projecting a cleaning or coating material upon the surface and for recovering the impacted cleaning or coating material and/or the material removed from the surface.
2. Background of the Invention
The process cleaning of a surface by sand blasting, water blasting and the like has been well established in the prior art. Although these cleaning processes have progressed the art, the processes still require the projection of a cleaning material such as sand, water or another abrasive material to impact onto a surface. The force of the impact of the cleaning material abrades or cleans the surface thus removing any overcoating, contaminants, corrosion or the like.
Typically, the cleaning material is directed from a nozzle toward the surface by an operator physically holding the nozzle. The force of the cleaning material emanating from the nozzle makes the physical holding of the nozzle difficult for the operator. In addition, the force of the impact of the cleaning material on the surface results in the cleaning material and material removed from the surface such as overcoatings, contaminants, corrosion or the like being projected back from the surface. The cleaning material and the material removed from the surface are not only projected back toward the operator but are also dispersed within the surrounding atmosphere. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that such an operation is hazardous not only to the operator but is also hazardous to the environment.
In a spray coating process, a coating material is directed from a nozzle toward the surface. In some cases, a portion of the coating material is projected back and dispersed within the surrounding atmosphere. In a plasma spray coating process, an inert atmosphere is required for the spray coating process. The loss of the inert atmosphere significantly increases the cost of applying the plasma coating. In other spray coating processes, coating solvents are released into the surrounding atmosphere. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that such a coating operation is hazardous to the environment.
In my prior patents including U.S. Patents RE 30,289; 4,139,970 and 4,545,156, I replaced the physical holding the of nozzle by an operator through the use of a nozzle holding apparatus. These U.S. patents not only eliminated the difficult task of physically holding the nozzle by an operator, but also enabled the use of multiple nozzles to increase the efficiency of the cleaning operation. In addition, since these U.S. Patents eliminated the need for the operator to physically hold the nozzle, the operator could be removed from the immediate area of the cleaning process. Accordingly, the hazard to the operator was substantially reduced through the practice of my prior inventions.
It is a prime object of the present invention to improve upon my prior inventions by providing a recovery system for totally collecting the impacted cleaning material and the material removed from the cleaned surface and for totally collecting non-adhering coating material.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a cleaning material and material removed from the surface that is safe for both the operator and the environment.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a cleaning material and material removed from the surface that is a practical apparatus and method for such recovery.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a cleaning material and a material removed from the surface that has substantially total recovery.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a cleaning material and a material removed from the surface material that is adaptable to various pre-existing cleaning devices.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a cleaning material and a material removed from the surface material that is mountable on a pre-existing cleaning device for movement therewith.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a cleaning material and a material removed from the surface that is light-weight and durable.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a cleaning material and a material removed from the surface having a life expectancy commensurate with the life expectancy of blast nozzles.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a cleaning material and a material removed from the surface that is economical to manufacture and easy to replace.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a cleaning material and a material removed from a surface that recovers substantially all of the materials with a minimum vacuum source.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a coating material for totally collecting non-adhering coating material.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for providing a specialized atmosphere for facilitating a coating process and for recollecting the specialized atmosphere.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for recovering a treating material which does not contact the treated surface.
The foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent objects of the present invention. These objects should be construed as being merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the invention. Many other beneficial results can be obtained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or modifying the invention with in the scope of the invention. Accordingly other objects in a full understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the summary of the invention, the detailed description describing the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.